Pilot George Maddox, 54, died of injuries from plane crash in NJ

By Rick Badie

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

George Maddox loved the history and lore of the Wild West.

His favorite movie was “Tombstone,” which dealt with the legend of Wyatt Earp.

In Atlanta, he belonged to the Single Action Shooting Society, an international organization of like-minded western fans. They dress up like cowboys and fire six-shooters competitively. They have shooting aliases. His was “Red Clay.”

“He had a derringer and a whole bunch of pistols,” said his wife, Lisa Roach Maddox of Sinking Spring, Pa., and formerly of Atlanta. “He had a big cart made for them so he could pull them around.”

In Atlanta, one of Mr. Maddox’s early jobs was as an animal handler for the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory University. He held the position five years. Several years ago, he saw two familiar faces on a visit to the Atlanta Zoo.

“He actually recognized and called over two gorillas who had been placed there,” his wife said. “They had not seen him in years.”

When Mr. Maddox began hang gliding, it piqued an interest in flying. At 30, he earned a bachelor’s of science degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla. Afterward, he worked as a flight instructor several years for Epps Aviation at the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport.

For five years, he was chief pilot for a unit of Smithkline Beecham Corp. now called Quest Diagnostics, Inc. Six years ago, he relocated with Quest, a testing firm, to Reading, Pa.

On Aug. 21, Mr. Maddox was the captain of a plane involved in a fiery crash landing at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey. However, he was not at the controls when the twin-engine Beechcraft skimmed the edge of a highway and clipped a tree, according to an article on nj.com.

On Sept. 4, George W. Maddox, 54, died at St. Barnabus Medical Center in Livingston, N.J. from injuries sustained in the crash. A memorial service will be 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday at the Center for Puppetry Arts, where he and Lily, his daughter, saw shows. Lutz Funeral Home in Reading, Pa., is handling arrangements.

Mr. Maddox was born in Asheville, N.C., the only child of George and Shirley Maddox. He spent nearly 25 years in Atlanta. He played guitar in a band called “Angel Lust” and worked as a roadie for “The Producers” and “The Brain.” He met his future wife at a Producers show in Louisiana. Nearly two decades later, they married.

On Facebook, a page is dedicated to the pilot. There, the family has requested donations for a college fund for his daughter. They can be sent to: 3804 Wyoming Dr. S., Sinking Spring, Pa. 19608.

“He would have wanted her to not just have an education, but the education she wanted,” said friend Lorna Howley of Philadelphia. “He would want her to follow her dream.”

Additional survivors are his mother, Shirley Sparrow Maddox of Asheville, N.C.; and a stepdaughter, Sara K. Byrd of Tuscaloosa.